JJ's Five Years Old!

He had a wonderful Spiderman themed birthday party at lunch yesterday. I can't believe our little guy is already 5. Seems like just yesterday we were at Altru in Grand Forks holding him in our arms. And we already have pre-kindergarten round up in a couple of weeks! Yikes! All the things to think about this year. Our lives will be so different in 6 months with one is school. He is going to love being in school and meeting new friends!

Happy and Healthy

Zach has blessed us with his presence for 6 whole months already!!!! He weighed in at 17lbs 6oz and 26.5in tall(both in the 5oth percentile). His head was a bit on the small side, but no concerns. He is sitting up by himself most of the time and is very fascinated by his brother and sister! He is our texture kid. He loves anything that he can grab and make a noise with. He is very chill as most people around here put it and he smiles a ton :) We are still working on the sleeping through the night thing. Mommy would be very happy with that! He is in LOVE with his bath time. He'll play and squeal 'til the water is cold and then some.

Updates

Hello. I feel like I haven't updated ya'll on much lately. Well, really there isn't that much going on. I did get my new Canon on Friday and these are the results of my new toy :) I think it captures the beauty of my children so well! I am so happy with my camera. Now I need to figure out how all the gadgets work.

The kids are getting so big. JJ is getting ready to turn 5 in a couple of weeks. I can't believe he'll be five! And Maddie will be 3 in 3 weeks! She is growing up so fast and has become a little lady. And she is in love with all things girly and princess-like. And her favorite color is pink. Of course.

Zach just turned 6 months. He is so happy and giggly :) He is just about sitting up by himself and is fascinated by all things that move and make noise.

John is busy finishing up is Navigator Instructor upgrade and has his checkride this week.

I am staying busy with the normal things, laundry, cleaning, playing with the kids. I did start a new bible study last week with a neighbor and one other girl. So far so good!

Artist

Maddie has become quite the little artist this week! These are the drawings she has created in the last couple of days. I can't get over how good she is doing and she isn't quite 3 yet!

My Babies

I got them all in the tub together a couple of nights ago and they insisted on silly faces for me.

Hair

I wanted something different in the color department. So I went dark!

Princess Ballerina

This is how she INSISTED on going to the library...our little girlie girl!

The Military Wife

I am stealing this from a friend who posted it on FB....But I liked it and wanted to share.

Military Wife

Lots of moving...

Moving...

Moving...

Moving far from home...

Moving two cars, three kids and one dog...all riding with HER of course.

Moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house;

Moving curtains that won't fit;

Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours.

Moving away from friends;

Moving toward new friends;

Moving her most important luggage: her trunk full of memories.

Often waiting...

Waiting...

Waiting...

Waiting for housing.

Waiting for orders.

Waiting for deployments.

Waiting for phone calls.

Waiting for reunions.

Waiting for the new curtains to arrive.

Waiting for him to come home,

For dinner...AGAIN!

They call her 'Military Dependent', but she knows better:

She is fiercely In-Dependent.

She can balance a check book;

Handle the yard work;

Fix a noisy toilet;

Bury the family pet...

She is intimately familiar with drywall anchors and toggle bolts.

She can file the taxes;

Sell a house;

Buy a car;

Or set up a move...

.....all with ONE Power of Attorney.

She welcomes neighbors that don't welcome her.

She reinvents her career with every PCS;

Locates a house in the desert, The Arctic, Or the deep south.

And learns to call them all 'home'.

She MAKES them all home.

Military Wives are somewhat hasty...

They leap into:

Decorating,

Leadership,

Volunteering,

Career alternatives,

Churches,

And friendships.

They don't have 15 years to get to know people.

Their roots are short but flexible.

They plant annuals for themselves and perennials for those who come

after them.

Military Wives quickly learn to value each other:

They connect over coffee,

Rely on the spouse network,

Accept offers of friendship and favors.

Record addresses in pencil...

Military Wives have a common bond:

The Military Wife has a husband unlike other husbands; his commitment is

unique.

He doesn't have a 'JOB'

He has a 'MISSION' that he can't just decide to quit...

He's on-call for his country 24/7.

But for her, he's the most unreliable guy in town!

His language is foreign

TDY

PCS

EPR

SOS

ACC

BDU

ACU

BAR

CIB

TAD

ABU

And so, a Military Wife is a translator for her family and his.

She is the long- distance link to keep them informed;

The glue that holds them together.

A Military Wife has her moments:

She wants to wring his neck;

Dye his uniform pink;

Refuse to move to Siberia;

But she pulls herself together.

Give her a few days,

A travel brochure,

A long hot bath,

A pledge to the flag,

A wedding picture,

And she goes.

She packs.

She moves.

She follows.

Why?

What for?

How come?

You may think it is because she has lost her mind.

But actually it is because she has lost her heart.

It was stolen from her by a man,

Who puts duty first,

Who longs to deploy,

Who salutes the flag,

And whose boots in the doorway remind her that as long as he is her

Military Husband,

She will remain his Military Wife.

And would have it no other way.

--Author Unknown

Gotta Support!

How's this Anne?????

Lovable

I just LOVE this face! Don't you?

Growing

So it hit me this morning like a ton of bricks...the kids are growing up. For some reason I am having a hard time with Maddie. Not in a bad way, just watching her be so independent and not need me at such an early age is just plain hard. JJ on the other hand would still let me dress him if I wanted. Maddie picks out her own clothes most days, dresses herself, and usually goes to the bathroom with no help needed. She does everything "all by myself." If only you could hear how cute she sounds when she says that.

While we were in the car yesterday John and I were discussing JJ and school in the fall. These next six months will be the last we have of him home all day. I can already see it in him. He is anxious to get out of the house everyday - doesn't want to be home, ever. He is just ready to be going to school and learning. I can't explain the feeling, he is just there, ready to go.

And Zach, he'll be 5 months next week. He LOVES to eat his cereal and veggies. I am so glad he likes baby food because the other two refused it, but that just means he is growing up too! And this morning he had a real poo, not a breast fed poo. It was a food poo.

Do you hear me children? You are NOT allowed to grow anymore! Not one inch!

Taste Buds

Hi, my name is Ellen. I am 31 years old and I like cucumbers. I just discovered them or I should say my taste buds finally like them! I don't know what came over me. I tried them on cute little finger sandwiches at church and have been eating them on my salads ever since that day in August! I can't believe I didn't like them before. Thank you for listening. This is something I needed to share :) Anne, you were in my thoughts while typing this!

Inspired

Today while viewing Mandy's blog, I came across a blog she has listed on her site. One click after another and I am finding myself inspired to try the Eat From the Pantry Challenge. I really want to do this. Starting tomorrow. I am going to spend my day taking inventory and getting started! I'll be trying to blog about as I go. Maybe that will help me stay on track!

JJ's New Spec's!

After many hoops and loops I got JJ into the ophthalmologist last week only to find out he is far sighted and needs glasses. They arrived today and he is looking very handsome! Now I just hope we don't struggle with keeping them on his face....

New Spectacles

I am sooo happy with my glasses I got in the mail today. a.) Because they are super cute b.) They were only 12.95 + shipping! I actually ordered two pair. They are both super cute. I think I might actually wear glasses more often now that I have two pair that are cute and comfy.

Baby Giggles

Zach Loving Tummy Time

Zach was really trying hard to scoot across the floor. He did in fact do that before I got out the camera of course! Here is Z trying though :)

'Tis the Season to be Merry

We made sugar cookies and decorated them today for Santa to eat tonight! The kids had a blast and it's the first year they really got into sprinkles...a little too much :)
John's mom and stepdad are here until early tomorrow so they opened presents from Grandma and Grandpa Rees early. JJ was so geeked for his new car tracks.And Maddie got her new baby that she has been talking about forever. They both asked for things from Santa that we didn't get them and grandma wanted to make them happy so she got them things they desperately thought they needed!

And we did a gingerbread house earlier in the week. And surprisingly there is NO candy missing from the house!

When it Rains, it Pours

That's how I feel today or more like this week. Potty training isn't for the weak or the weary! I started Maddie on the potty and JJ wants to go as well, which is good. I am glad JJ is finally taking initiative. But Maddie is starting to not get so excited about it anymore. Yesterday, there were so many accidents I stopped counting. One 10 minute segment of my life consisted of feeding Zach. During this time I asked Maddie to get the eggs out for the brownies we would soon be baking. She brought them to me like a good girl and "set" them down on the floor. But the term I would like to use or the one that would better describe the action would be smash. So now I have a baby attached to me and egg in my carpet. Upon which time Maddie announces she has pee and poo in her undies. After getting Zach content, I take her to the bathroom. After inspection I declare it is bath time. Back to the egg mess. Oh, wait Maddie is now washing her own hair and has soap in her eyes, hence the screaming in the bathroom. And later in the day she decided to get out the milk and orange juice and make a cocktail for herself which means that most of it ended up on the rug in the kitchen, not the tile of course! So after all of this wonderful day I am going to invest in a new Bissell spot remover because the one we currently own leaks. I have to clean up after the cleaner :) I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for a new one in the Sunday paper! And I will be thankful when John comes home on Sunday!

Handsome little children

JJ performed in church yesterday morning. We actually tricked him into wearing the tie! Gotta love reverse psychology! My favorite song they sung was to the tune of London Bridge is Falling Down. It went like this: There was no room at the inn, at the inn, at the inn, there was no room at the inn. Only stinky stables. P U! :)